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[PICTURES] Azhar Ali retires from Test cricket - How do you rate his career?

I never understand disrespect for a player when he doesn't retire on his own because his form isn't great.

This is up to the selectors.

The player will always believe he is one innings from turning it all around. And sometimes they will overvalue their worth because they are so deep in it.

You can bash Azhar for many things but being selected for Pakistani team consistently isn't his doing. It is the selectors.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I knew today was going to be an emotional rollercoaster but the messages of love and support from all of you have made me realise that I retire as a cricketer with tons of well-wishers. Thank you, everyone, for making today special.❤️&#55356;&#56821;&#55356;&#56816;</p>— Azhar Ali (@AzharAli_) <a href="https://twitter.com/AzharAli_/status/1603794382150373376?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Good luck to Azhar. He never hid and always gave it his best. Sure he should have retired about 2 years ago but that's on the selectors that kept picking him.

I feel a future career in TV commentary for him for Pakistan's home matches as he speaks good English and seems a likable guy.
 
One thing I would like to add is that he has been a very good ambassador for Pakistan cricket.

Stayed out of controversies, always professional and level-headed.

Whenever I have had the pleasure of meeting him, he has always been so humble, down to earth and a lovely man.

All the best for the future.
 
He was never a great player but it was a downward slide since he started having issues with his knees. H
 
Corridor of Uncertainty said:
I never understand disrespect for a player when he doesn't retire on his own because his form isn't great.

This is up to the selectors.

The player will always believe he is one innings from turning it all around. And sometimes they will overvalue their worth because they are so deep in it.

You can bash Azhar for many things but being selected for Pakistani team consistently isn't his doing. It is the selectors.
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Sometimes you should know when your time is up. Brian Lara could have played at least another 5 years, most likely more. But he had no insecurities and retired. Similar for gilchrist, even Warne.

You can believe you’ve got that one innings, but what for? You’ve had an unfulfilled career? If it’s unfulfilled for so many years then that one last hurrah ain’t happening when you’re older and losing reflexes.

Yes the selectors are to blame too. But if you carry on playing when your past it and at passenger level, don’t be surprised that you will eventually get disrespected.

Might seem unfair, but that’s the way it is.

I agree he was a good guy, but so what
 
He was a mediocre b grade batsman. Not bad enough to be dropped but not good enough to make Pakistan a top team.
 
RedwoodOriginal said:
Despite his limited ability, he punched always above his weight and finished with a career to proud of. Most Pakistani fans have amnesia and can only remember things till a week ago. But I do remember all the knocks he played between 2013 and 2016 during Pakistan's dominance in UAE and our ascent to the zenith of test cricket. Misbah may have masterminded that run of success but it was players like Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Yasir Shah and even Asad Shafiq that delivered consistently and made that possible. I also remember the monster run he was on in 2016. The double hundred he belted at the MCG...first Pakistani batter to ever do so, and the monumental triple hundred that sadly came infront of an empty Dubai crowd.

There's no denying that he had many failures in his career. The most disappointing aspect about his career was that he was never truly able to take over from Misbah and Younis and went through some wretched runs of form after they retired.

But he was a through gentleman through and through. A man who put value into what it meant to play for Pakistan. He wasn't crooked and he wasn't a cheat. And perhaps two things he does not get enough credit for; are the innings he played in the CT Final and the stand he took when that crooked snake Amir was being reintroduced into the team. Both him and Hafeez were right and we all should have known better.

Anyway, my hats off to him to a great career, and having the self-respect and dignity to walk away when it was time to walk away. Any toxic posters thinking about @ing this post and saying something negative about him can just buzz off. I simply don't care what you think and you are not going to change my mind about anything I just said. So don't bother trying.
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Azhar Ali before he started having knee issues -60 matches-46.86

He had knee issues(post CT2017) hence it effected his batting- 36 matches -34.90
 
An honest trier and overall, a very solid Test career for Pakistan. He hasn't been pretty to watch but despite his limited skills, he made the best use out of them and had a Test career most players would be begging to have.

He was a big part of the team that ranked 1st under Misbah and helped create a fortress in UAE during the extremely dark times for Pakistan. 42.5 average batting at mostly 3 or opening for most of his career is pretty solid record to have. It's worth noting #3 is not an easy position to bat at and we have seen players like Babar struggle to put up top notch numbers himself batting at #3 (30 average in 10 matches vs 60+ batting at #4).

There will be areas where his career won't be looked over too fondly, in particular his captaincy where Pakistan lost home series vs Sri Lanka & NZ but overall, it was a pretty good career with some really top notch knocks like his triple hundred vs WI. He also genuinely seemed like a pretty good guy and was drama free for his career - it often seems like something that is overlooked considering some of the drama bazi & nonsense we have seen from players over the past decades.

Congrats on a great career Azhar and all the best in your retirement!
 
Wish him all the best Although his retirement is well overdue He always played with dignity and always conducted himself in a classy manner unlike many other pakistanis

He was a great ambassador for pakistan

I just wish it was an immediate retirement because now hes put the management in a awkward position when hes not good enough to make the starting eleven
 
Corridor of Uncertainty said:
I never understand disrespect for a player when he doesn't retire on his own because his form isn't great.

This is up to the selectors.

The player will always believe he is one innings from turning it all around. And sometimes they will overvalue their worth because they are so deep in it.

You can bash Azhar for many things but being selected for Pakistani team consistently isn't his doing. It is the selectors.
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Sometimes a player becomes big enough that the selectors don't have the authority to sack him. Dhoni for example was such a big cricketer that they couldn't think of dropping him and only had to wait till he himself made unavailable.
 
He had a solid consistent career and was a good ambassador for the country . People who criticise have no class.

He averaged at least 40 in each year of test cricket other than 2018 and 2019 which was during his lean spell.
Sometimes limited ability gets you places if you have hard work and dedication and Azhar had that in abundance .

His record speaks for himself and to top it up played clutch knocks in CT 17 in the semi and final .

He debuted during that awful 2010 spot fixing tour .

Happy retirement.
 
Top player and one of the best Pakistan has produced in recent history.

Can hold his head high in retirement. His 200 in Australia is a personal fav of mine
 
Zaz said:
Wish him all the best Although his retirement is well overdue He always played with dignity and always conducted himself in a classy manner unlike many other pakistanis

He was a great ambassador for pakistan

I just wish it was an immediate retirement because now hes put the management in a awkward position when hes not good enough to make the starting eleven
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Going by the form he showed in the last match he can easily replace Agha. Although unfair on Agha as he did not get much opportunity in his second inning, but he can be recalled in the next series.
 
PakPremi said:
Going by the form he showed in the last match he can easily replace Agha. Although unfair on Agha as he did not get much opportunity in his second inning, but he can be recalled in the next series.
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Azhar doesnt deserve another test and neither does Agha, both are liabilities with the bat.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Azhar u r a such a pure soul & true ambassador &#55357;&#56845;. Huge respect & thanks for serving Pakistan &#55356;&#56821;&#55356;&#56816; with honesty & dignity. Happy retirement & wishing u all the best as always for ur future endeavours. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Respect?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Respect</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/AzharAli_?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AzharAli_</a> <a href="https://t.co/Cfnl7d56e4">pic.twitter.com/Cfnl7d56e4</a></p>— Mohammad Hafeez (@MHafeez22) <a href="https://twitter.com/MHafeez22/status/1603654958892605441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Does Azhar Ali deserve a farewell game - 3rd Test?
 
MenInG said:
Does Azhar Ali deserve a farewell game - 3rd Test?
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No!

Is tomorrow some sort of charity game or testimonial? 1 Test win 7 in Asian conditions, and zero wins from 5 at Home. We should be planning longterm batting future and that should have been giving players like Kamran Ghulam etc.. their debuts ages ago.

PCB seem more interested in rolling out red carpet to celebrate mediocrity. Lets give Azhar a final test, guard of honour, cut some cake!
 
MenInG said:
Does Azhar Ali deserve a farewell game - 3rd Test?
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Probably not just because he announced his retirement, but then again how many former pak players have had the decency to do that? I say give it to him. You already lost the series, what can you really hope to achieve in the last test by not picking him?
 
If he is retiring, why doesn't he just retires with immediate effect, why asking for another test , why blocking another youngster's chance to play test.
 
Knowing PCB they will pick Azhar and then 1st test we will see Agha come back in, just full on clown mentality with team selection.

You have dropped someone twice in recent times only to bring them back after being dropped for "one test". Stupidity at its finest.
 
moghul said:
If he is retiring, why doesn't he just retires with immediate effect, why asking for another test , why blocking another youngster's chance to play test.
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Sadly Kamran Ghulam or Hurraira are not in sqaud to make debuts, such is the poor sqaud picked by the clown selector Mo wasim.
 
Amjid Javed said:
No!

Is tomorrow some sort of charity game or testimonial? 1 Test win 7 in Asian conditions, and zero wins from 5 at Home. We should be planning longterm batting future and that should have been giving players like Kamran Ghulam etc.. their debuts ages ago.

PCB seem more interested in rolling out red carpet to celebrate mediocrity. Lets give Azhar a final test, guard of honour, cut some cake!
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A key remnant of the Misbah era
 
Amjid Javed said:
Knowing PCB they will pick Azhar and then 1st test we will see Agha come back in, just full on clown mentality with team selection.

You have dropped someone twice in recent times only to bring them back after being dropped for "one test". Stupidity at its finest.
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Always one step back. Never forward
 
Amjid Javed said:
Sadly Kamran Ghulam or Hurraira are not in sqaud to make debuts, such is the poor sqaud picked by the clown selector Mo wasim.
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So what, this is home series, they can be at Karachi within hours from anywhere in Pakistan . This is not WC where only players in the squad can replace an injured player , no such rule .
 
Amjid Javed said:
4 years to late, should have been booted out 4 years ago, instead PCB decide to make him test captain at that time.

we've wasted the last 3 series in particular carrying this passenger. Good riddance, finally took the hint and retired.
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This, brutal but very true. Him being in the team wasted someone else's 4 years of their career. Our players don't know how to retire with dignity and all of them eventually have to be booted out.
 
moghul said:
So what, this is home series, they can be at Karachi within hours from anywhere in Pakistan . This is not WC where only players in the squad can replace an injured player , no such rule .
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Yes this is a home series and we can call up players into the sqaud, Did you see Mo wasim do that after Rauf / Naseem were injured after 1st test? Did you see any new players being drafted in after 2nd test?

You think any decent players are going to be drafted in for NZ series?

When you have a clueless selector common sense and bring in correct players aint going to happen.

TTFs like Masood and Spray gun Wasim Jnr will be used.
 
MenInG said:
Does Azhar Ali deserve a farewell game - 3rd Test?
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Was never a fan of this except for maybe GOAT / ATG level players like Wasim, Warne or SRT.

But not every world class player deserves it imo.
 
I know the Worcestershire player talk very highly about him and I know young players like Jack Haynes use him as a role model. I hope he plays county cricket and earns a good retirement. My issue isn't with him, its the longevity given to moderately talented players. We saw with Hafeez and Malik that it stops evolution of teams and you become stuck in a rut of mediocrity. Maybe there isn't gold at the end of rainbow but it doesn't mean we shouldn't look for it and the prolonged selection of players like AA stops that.
 
Could of course play at least a couple more seasons of County cricket.

He already has a deal for next year.
 
Damn, this makes me feel old and I am only 28!!!! Azhar Ali is the first player that I have watched since his debut and to retire.

He made his debut in summer 2010 or 2011/12 tour of England. I remember back then, the hype was around Umar Amin due to his technical abilities but it was Azhar Ali’s grit and determination that took everyone by surprise.

Since then, Misbah and Younis looked after him well where arguably his best performances came from. I think PCB deserve credit for allowing him to develop in test cricket only during his early career, that helped him a lot but I wish more work was done on his bowling as he had potential.

I remember very well him becoming captain of ODI team and although he struggled in the longer run but his Graeme Smith approach in opening PP was very effective.

Most importantly, a player that played for the country, did not cause any drama and was very professional throughout. Highlight has to be his match winning test record chase v SL. Apart from that, he didn’t deliver as many important memorable performance as one would have hoped. He’s retiring a bit late but with grace.

Thank you Azhar Ali, you were part of my early 20s and for that I will remember few things about you very well. The Wall, Azhar Ali.
 
Azhar Ali from the date of his debut to the retirement of Misbah and YK in June 2017 was averaging around 47 in test cricket.

Azhar Ali after Misbah's and YK's retirement in June 2017 to the end of his career saw his average nose dive to 34. That is how bad he was in the last 5 years
 
MenInG said:
Does Azhar Ali deserve a farewell game - 3rd Test?
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No Pakistan needs to win the final test and avoid the embarrasment of a home whitewash

Im not a fan of farewells There should be none of that

Theres no room for sentiment im afraid and we need to put out our best available team
 
Thanks for the 12 years of service and best of luck in your future endeavours.
 
In my view Pakistan are better off letting Azhar have the farewell game tomorrow instead of replacing Imam with Masood
 
Rana said:
In my view Pakistan are better off letting Azhar have the farewell game tomorrow instead of replacing Imam with Masood
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And, make it a fundraiser charity match to help a retiring cricketer , who was an average player but was a very nice guy, a thorough gentleman . Its just a test match not an all important T20 match, I agree.
 
moghul said:
And, make it a fundraiser charity match to help a retiring cricketer , who was an average player but was a very nice guy, a thorough gentleman . Its just a test match not an all important T20 match, I agree.
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You can make fun of the suggestion but I am talking from a cricket POV. Azhar is still a better choice than having Shan sitting duck Masood
 
Rana said:
You can make fun of the suggestion but I am talking from a cricket POV. Azhar is still a better choice than having Shan sitting duck Masood
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Sadly not just the team but Pakistan cricket followers are also becoming " softies" , this is nothing but declining passion for the game . They are OK with mediocracy and soft performances , losses are taken as not a big deal .
Not just Azhar's receiving a gift in the shape of a test match is being endorsed by some but also no hue and cry over inclusion of Faheem and persisting with him . He is with the team now for 6 years and on his way to become another Azhar like "legend", his qualification , " he is a very nice guy " " plays the game with dignity " , " never caused any problem " ----------what else you need ??
 
He's got runs and tons all around the world. Average of 42, 19 Test hundreds, that's a serious career. Well played.

Love to see him finish with 20 tons.

I'll remember him for all the tough runs in England vs the moving ball, using his patience and determination. He had some good knocks v Eng and and Australia (at Lords and Leeds!) in really tough low scoring games.
 
Ami said:
Nice one Azhar.

You, along with Misbah, Younus and Asad brought us out of one of our darkest periods.

You guys were the KINGS in the desert when we reached no 1.

And, who can forget your contribution in the CT 2017 final; possibly your best Odi innings.

Always a gentleman, played the game 'like back in the day'...

...and here is a stat for those who never could give you what you were due/deserved.

Azhar
Tests 96
Runs 7097
Ave 42.49
100s/50s: 19/35

Pujara
Tests 96
Runs 6792
Ave 43.81
100s/50s: 18/33

Goodbye.
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I rate him better than Pujara because he played with a weaker batting line up and never played at home. Also, Azhar post 2017 knee injury was never the same.
 
Credit where credit is due - made the most of his is limited talent and was a key batsman for us from 2014-17. His peak also coincided with us reaching the No. 1 ranking in Tests back in 2016. Also remains our most recent triple centurion

Also played a crucial role for us in winning the 2017 CT - I believe he was our top scorer and his half century in the final laid the foundation for us reaching 338.

However, being pragmatic, he was past his shelf life for about 3-4 years and was badly exposed once MisYou retired. Lack of impactful runs and often struggled to up the ante - even when set.. No surprises that his Test Average was declining during the last few years of his career. A poor captain in any format of the game although to be fair his predecessor/ successor were / have not been much better either..

Overall a solid B career
 
Amjid Javed said:
4 years to late, should have been booted out 4 years ago, instead PCB decide to make him test captain at that time.

we've wasted the last 3 series in particular carrying this passenger. Good riddance, finally took the hint and retired.
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This may sound harsh but it is the truth - good post sir
 
Pakistan's team management have made mockery of test cricket that's why poor player like Azhar Ali has played so many tests.

Just ridiculous stuff.
 
I think we can see in this thread that Azhar Ali as a cricketer is seemingly more rated outside of Pakistan than by Pakistan fans.

Ive always found his strike rate and technique terminally dull to watch — an SR below 40 even in Test/FC cricket I always view as a red flag — but there can be no doubting his ability to score tough runs at times, particularly overseas. His record as a Test batter, overall, is pretty good.

I think he should be wished the very best.
 
An honorable servant of Pakistan cricket who gave his all. His knock at the champions trophy final was memorable.

A humble and soft spoken player, Azhar has always come correct when he was needed. Unfortunate to see him retire before playing 100 Test matches.

Best of luck to him on his future endeavored and thanks for all you have done for Pakistan cricket.
 
Made the most out of his very limited abilities. A nice guy on the field, that makes him respect him. Although having seen him, I can't admire him as a player. But he did good things for his team in his career.

I wish him well for his post retirement life.
 
James said:
I think we can see in this thread that Azhar Ali as a cricketer is seemingly more rated outside of Pakistan than by Pakistan fans.

Ive always found his strike rate and technique terminally dull to watch — an SR below 40 even in Test/FC cricket I always view as a red flag — but there can be no doubting his ability to score tough runs at times, particularly overseas. His record as a Test batter, overall, is pretty good.

I think he should be wished the very best.
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It’s sadly because many Pakistanis are starved for a test player with the play style of a Harry Brook, Warner, Kohli type. This is why Babar was also hyped to the moon up until this year.

Anything less is not even worth a second look, even though Azhar was more than good enough for the level Pakistan has gotten to at the test level 2009 onwards.

He was an actual anchor, I know that word gets thrown around to no end when it doesn’t fit, but it does here.
 
A mediocre player, a serial match loer and momentum killer.

Can’t remember a more useless batter who played 97 matches along with Technique Shafiq.

Bye bye.
 
Azhar should play the last test.

The series has been lost and the WTC is over for us. Its his final game, let him play, besides agha has done nothing so there is space. Its not like everyone is performing.

As for posters saying that he should be bashed for not retiring earlier, plz do try to think from a cricketers pov.

A cricketer gives 10 years of amateur cricket before becoming professional. Remember, when you retire, you are saying goodbye to your whole playing career. You wont be getting the huge pay cheque, you wont be getting the accomodations, the attention, the services of hitels, getting to be part of the exclusive group of pakistani cricketers, travelling by plane and coaster as a team.

There are alot of things that you have to look at from a cricketers pov.

Yes there ia first class cricket but its not the same.

Yet, Azhar retired abit early and on his own terms compares to others
 
AYrePbL.png
 
As expected PCB have given this laser one last game, no respect for test teams current struggles, gifting a mediocre player a farewell test is seen as more important.
 
Its a graceful end to a good international cricketing career. He should be lauded on going out on his own with respect and grace intact.
 
Loads of niave Azhar fans thinking he's retiring on his own terms, the guys been dropped twice in recent series so has clearly been told by PCB he's not wanted anymore.
 
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Tame soft dismissal sums u his weak feeble batting career.
 
Amjid Javed said:
Loads of niave Azhar fans thinking he's retiring on his own terms, the guys been dropped twice in recent series so has clearly been told by PCB he's not wanted anymore.
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I get the feeling that a gentlemen’s agreement has been done, ie Azhar agrees to step down for good after this game and in return he gets a farewell appearance, that’s the deal.
 
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Amjid Javed said:
Tame soft dismissal sums u his weak feeble batting career.
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Video

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/v5ucsc" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
 
MenInG said:
Video

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/v5ucsc" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
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There is a leg slip in place, why play such a high risk, low reward shot.
 
James said:
I get the feeling that a gentlemen’s agreement has been done, ie Azhar agrees to step down for good after this game and in return he gets a farewell appearance, that’s the deal.
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Its making a joke of test cricket No wonder pakistan is in the mess it is

Ive loads of time for azhar and the value hes brought to the team over the years but hes clearly been well past his best over the last 2-3 years

Nobody should ever get a last game unless they are good enough to make the team in the first place

Azhar wasnt deemed good enough last game anf was dropped in sri lanka too Why is he suddenly back?

Theres players playing for years in domestic cricket who dont get a sniff and the national team is run on whims, friendship and sentiment

What a circus When are we gonna get a professional set up??
 
One can tell that Azhar’s time is up in international cricket when watching him against the short ball, because he is all over the place. His reactions have slowed and his eyes have gone.
 
James said:
One can tell that Azhar’s time is up in international cricket when watching him against the short ball, because he is all over the place. His reactions have slowed and his eyes have gone.
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You could see this 4 years ago when his batting stats were that of a tail-ender. He was a walking wicket outside of the UAE.

When Misbah / YK retired, he didnt make 1 single match winning test knock against a top Test side and that tells you everything.
 
Awarding Azhar a farewell , charity test is disgraceful and extreme disrespect to test cricket . To accommodate him in the team, they had to drop a bowler in the bowling line up already one of the weakest ever to represent Pakistan .

Our bowling line up in this match is composed of two spinners , a rookie fake allrounder and a pseudo batting allrounder ( Fahim ) , that's it.

Basically the team is picked up to avoid a white wash and not to win the last test, good luck with that.
 
James said:
One can tell that Azhar’s time is up in international cricket when watching him against the short ball, because he is all over the place. His reactions have slowed and his eyes have gone.
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Only in PK do you see mediocre talents get farewell tests.
 
Not the way he would've wanted it to end... regardless, congrats to Azhar on a great career!

<div style="width: 100%; height: 0px; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.250%;"><iframe src="https://streamable.com/e/mu0g6t" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%" allowfullscreen style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute;"></iframe></div>
 
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Pathetic end to a Pathetic career, deserved that duck and humiliation. What a waste of space in the side.
 
Amjid Javed said:
Pathetic end to a Pathetic career, deserved that duck and humiliation. What a waste of space in the side.
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Id urge you to be more respectful of any player whether good or poor

7k runs is not pathetic Yes hes been finished for a while but thats the selectors and managements call to have had him in the team for the last two years blame them

All the best to Azhar for his future endeavours
 
He was quality batsman for our standards till he had no knee issues. He has been extremely average for last 5 years, should have been dropped him two years ago.
 
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